I managed to sit through last night's "Studio 60" (as well as the last 15 minutes or so of "24" which is NBA-like in holding the real drama until the clock is ticking down). Mostly a snooze, once again no point to a two-parter. But I did perk up at the reference to the TCA being in town.

TCA is the Television Critics Association. I'm a member, and you have read about some of its gatherings in this blog.

On "Studio 60," Tom, in a bad lie, claimed that he had to be a celebrity waiter at a TCA event. The lie was bad because there was no point to it, and because his getting caught seemed inevitable — pretty much the way you knew that Danny and Jordan were going to get locked on the roof before the door even snapped shut. (And how many cell phones would be unable — oh, never mind, it's not worth it.)

Now, I have been to many TCA events over the last 22 years and I don't remember one with celebrity waiters. That said, I do remember:

— Craig Kilborn having Jell-O shots delivered to everyone present at a TCA awards.

— Jimmy Kimmel working the grill one lunchtime.

— Richard Simmons carrying a tray of fruit to reporters.

— A Fran Drescher press conference accompanied by bags of her croutons.

So maybe Aaron Sorkin was a waiter one time, and I just didn't notice.

Fox has a weird enough schedule anyway, with a late-summer start, a hiatus for baseball, then an overhaul in January to make room for "American Idol" and "24." So why not change things one more time, as it will after baseball? Here's the hype…

When the World Series concludes and the November Sweep approaches, FOX offers a brand-new game and makes some lineup changes of its own. The network will unveil THE RICH LIST, an exciting new quiz show where teams of strangers use knowledge and strategy to complete lists that can win them limitless amounts of money. Hosted by Eamonn Holmes, Britain’s well-known morning TV personality, THE RICH LIST premieres Wednesday, Nov. 1 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) following BONES.

In addition, two new FOX dramas will move to new nights after Baseball. Court will be in session on Mondays for the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced legal drama JUSTICE beginning Monday, Oct. 23 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT), following the hit series PRISON BREAK. And suspenseful VANISHED takes the search for Sara Collins to Fridays beginning Friday, Oct. 27 (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT), leading into new episodes of TRADING SPOUSES: MEET YOUR NEW MOMMY. 

TRADING SPOUSES, the unscripted series where moms from different walks of life switch families to experience the ultimate life change, returns with a two-hour season premiere Friday, Oct. 20 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) and makes its time period premiere Friday, Oct. 27 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 31, STANDOFF (8:00-9:00 PM ET/PT) leads off the night as the critically acclaimed hit drama series HOUSE (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) returns to its regular time period. 

After Baseball, new sitcoms ‘TIL DEATH (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT) and HAPPY HOUR (8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT) return to the Thursday schedule, leading into THE O.C., which will have its fourth season premiere Thursday, Nov. 2 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT), as previously announced.

FOX’s Saturday-night primetime lineup of COPS (8:00-8:30 PM and 8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT) and AMERICA’S MOST WANTED: AMERICA FIGHTS BACK (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) returns Saturday, Nov. 4, along with late-night programs MADtv (11 PM-Midnight ET/PT) and the new TALKSHOW WITH SPIKE FERESTEN (Midnight-12:30 AM ET/PT). On Sundays beginning Sunday, Nov. 5, THE SIMPSONS (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT), AMERICAN DAD (8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT), FAMILY GUY (9:00-9:30 PM ET/PT) and THE WAR AT HOME (9:30-10:00 PM ET/PT) all return, following an hour of comedy repeats and NFL overruns (7:00-8:00 PM ET/PT).

Something felt funny Wednesday morning as I waited for my shuttle to Los Angeles airport. Then it hit me: no nametag. After wearing it on a lanyard around my neck for two weeks (in order to get into tour events), I did not need to do so anymore. And then I really knew I was done.

No major difficulty getting home (aside from the aches in my knees from yet another sardine-packed airplane). First great night's sleep since I left. Ready to catch up on some shows in the DVR, and to process some notes for posts here, and to get back into the old routine.

Tonight's Fox press party was my last official act of the tour (well, aside from some writing I'm going to do tonight.) Niftiest sight: Eamonn Walker and Laurence Fishburne talking to each other. Walker is in the new Fox series "Justice," and Fishburne was with his wife, Gina Torres, who is in Fox's "Standoff." But was I going to butt into that conversation? I don't think so.

At some point I'll have more about "Nip/Tuck" from talking to Larry Hagman and Kelly Carlson; Carlson was very skittish about revealing plot points — and surprised by some of the things Ryan Murphy had said earlier in the day. (At the press conference, for that matter, Julian McMahon said Murphy often tells the press things he hasn't told the actors.)

Good chat (though off the record) with Walton Goggins of "The Shield" and a few words (again, recorder not out) with Jack McGee of "Rescue Me." Lots of stuff about "Bones" from two of the producers, which I also need to write up in detail. Some short takes: more romantic issues, a new character (played by Tamara Taylor) to add to the tension and Akron's Ray Wise — who did a guest shot recently — may get invited back for more.

Also interviewed Katie Jacobs, executive producer of "House," who was revealing about some of the coming season while obscuring other things; even while we were talking, I felt like a mouse being dangled by cat. Nuggets, subject to expansion later: House's pain issues are going to be a stronger plot point, he will have a real nemesis beginning around the fifth episode and his Vicodin use is going to be an issue.

All that, and the heat finally broke.

As a nod to its new comedy "Happy Hour," Fox preceded the press conference with servers bearing cocktails — mimosas, bloody Marys, something with Kahlua. It did not seem to bother Fox that the drinks were being distributed before 10 a.m. (although, it could have been a stunt planned when the network scheduled "Happy Hour" as an afternoon session — and stuck to when the press conference was moved to the morning).

If the stunt was also meant to dull the wits of the assembled reporters, Fox needn't have bothered. As I've said before, this is late in the press tour. I don't even drink, and my wits have dulled quite thoroughly.

Besides, the "Happy Hour" session was quite enjoyable without cocktails, one of those cases where the cast and producers were funnier in the room than they had been in the show's pilot.

Before "Happy Hour," we met the cast and producers of "Justice," a new legal drama from Fox. The cast includes Victor Garber, fresh off of "Alias" and — while saying he wanted to do this show — he admitted that dramas are not fun: "The schedule is brutal. You can't believe the hours that it takes to do these shows. And at the end of the day, if you go home at night thinking 'I
did a good job today, this was exciting,' it's all worthwhile."

Because yesterday I tried to torture Josh Berman about "Killer Instinct," a short-lived show from last season, (see my previous post for what happened) I decided to do the same to Jonathan Shapiro, an executive producer of "Justice." Last year he created the gone-in-a-blink "Just Legal," the Don Johnson lawyer show on The WB.

Lessons learned? " 'Be on Fox' is a good idea," he said. " 'Just Legal' was a great experience. I wish that it had lasted longer." Then he got back on message about his new show. "A lot of the issues that we addressed in 'Just Legal' and I wanted to address in 'Just Legal,' we're going to address here. That was a defense firm, this is a defense firm."

But I dug in a little more, asking how he felt about the quick hook the WB show got. "I spent many years working with Democratic candidates in various statewide elections. So early and abrupt endings of hopeful campaigns don't surprise me."

By the way, I think Fox had the most crowded stage of the press tour yesterday, when "Vanished" offered up 15 people — three producers and 12 actors. We've seen a fair number of double-digit panels so far — a sign of producer proliferation, ensemble casts and the need to make all the regular actors feel loved. Still, when the Q&A starts, because most of the questions are going to go to the producers (since they know most about what a show is going to be). Actors, meanwhile, are more likely to get individual attention in scrums afterward or at the network press parties. But press-conference neglect is even more likely when the stage is so packed.

Today is not only Fox's last day of the press tour, it's mine. I will be flying home tomorrow and gladly so.  All my writing plans for yesterday evening gave way to an unexpected but necessary blast of sleep — the kind where you lie down for a moment and wake up five or six hours later, then go back to sleep again.

Some of this came from having a day that felt dull. I managed to carve a column out of a press conference with Brad Garrett, but there were other stretches when it felt as if little was happening worth paying attention to. The only time I felt even a little aggressive was when I noticed that "Vanished" creator Josh Berman listed his tenure at "CSI" in his bio but had left out last season's short-lived "Killer Instinct." Since  I remembered him from that press tour, I gave him a chance to make amends during the press conference by asking what lessons he had learned from his previous series experience. But he talked only about "CSI."

Once the press conference was over, I asked him what he learned from the other show. "I only wrote the pilot," he said. "That was my involvement. I was contractually obligated to go back to 'CSI.' " With a laugh, he added, "So I learned that a show can get canceled if I'm not working on it."

Asked if the show lost the direction he had wanted for it, Berman said, "Yes. You know, you need a guiding creative force on a show and I don't think there are too many people out there who have the exact same vision. I like the people that they brought in to replace me very much. I thought they had a great vision for the show but it wasn't the same direction I wanted to take."

Part of my weariness may also have been sugar shock; one of Fox's press tour traditions is putting multiple containers of candy at the tables where we sit, and I found myself compulsively chomping on Skittles. (My pre-tour vows to eat right and exercise regularly were kept inconsistently.) But mostly I think I was just plain tired after being in Pasadena for two weeks and change. Sure, it's nice to be in a fancy hotel and to see stars, and to get all sorts of material for future stories. No complaints about that. And I've now had enough rest to get back on the horse today (so expect more posts here). But I am also thinking ahead — to the plane flight and to home and family.

Today was a Television Critics Association day, including our summer business meeting and, tonight, the presentation of our annual awards. (I say "our" because I'm a member.) It was a nice ceremony, with lots of people turning out, and with some lovely acceptance speeches. And it was a good situation just to talk with people I like from shows I admire.

Here are some highlights from the acceptance speeches, in the order they were given.

Individual achievement in drama, to Hugh Laurie of "House."  Laurie: "I never believed for one moment that my respect and admiration for television critics could grow ever greater. It has. This is partly because I'm not from these parts. I am from England, as you can probably tell, from the fact that I've just told you. … The relationship between artist and critic (in England) is very different. Over there, the artist is, if you like, the mouse. And the critic is the vicious sociopath who shatters dreams. It strikes me as a very different setup here and for that, I and everyone else on the show "House" is extremely grateful….

"As for this award, a couple of weeks ago I had the good fortune to attend the U.S. Grand Prix in Indianapolis, won, as usual, by Michael Schumacher … He has been world racing champion, Formula One, for the last seven years. But even his most ardent admirers would have to admit that it's got something to do with the fact that he has the fastest car. Elizabeth Taylor could probably get a podium place. … People compete with unequal equipment. If, for example, it's a running race and Michael Schumacher began the race with running spikes and the man next to him had lace-up Oxfords, and the man next to him was running in stilettos and the man on the outside lane was wearing a pair of West Highland Terriers. … But so it is with the business of acting. … I feel very much in the position of the man who has got a very, very fast car. … I am, every day that I go to work, deeply sensible of the honor I have to sit at the wheel and drive this wonderful character called House."

Outstanding achievement in drama, to "Lost." Damon Lindelof, executive producer: "We all sort of thought the same thing two years ago when the show was first a pilot, that it wasn't supposed to work. … We try to reinvent it constantly. But next year it could totally suck, and the year after that it could be gone. And we feel enormously grateful, by the grace of you guys. In the very beginning, the critics sort of backed the show and that has meant a lot to us. … I would really like to thank (executives at ABC and Touchstone Television) … for letting us walk into a room and say, 'All right, here's what's in the hatch: There's a guy, he's pushing a button every 108 minutes or he's told the world will end.' And they say, 'All right, right on, go ahead.' Normally that shouldn't be allowed to happen."

Outstanding achievement in children's programming, to "High School Musical."  Bill Borden, executive producer, entered to a song from "HSM.," then said: "I ran into an old friend of mine, Peter Horton (the actor-director, who was part of a group from award-winning 'Grey's Anatomy') who said 'I loved that song and movie for the first 50 times. If my daughter plays it again, I'm going to kill you.' "

Outstanding new program, to "My Name Is Earl." Greg Garcia, executive producer: "It's always nice to get an award … especially this award, because it's the critics. I mean, how big is that? And if there's one thing I've learned by doing 'Yes, Dear,' is you want the critics. Because if the critics hate your show, you're lucky to go, I don't know, six years. But just like 'Earl,' who is making up for all the bad things he's done in his life, I accept this award as a sign that you feel bad about what you've done to me. And tonight, the healing begins. I'm gonna need about 10 or 15 more of these, and you can cross me off your list."

Outstanding movie, miniseries or special, to "American Masters: Bob Dylan - No Direction Home." Prudence Glass, representing the series: "When Dylan's people called a couple of years ago and said, 'We're ready,' Susan (Lacy, "Masters" producer) called me into her office and said, 'You see what can happen if you call somebody once a month for 12 years?' "

Individual achievement in comedy, to Steve Carell of "The Office," Carell: "This is obviously such a great honor, particularly in light of the following. This is an excerpt from a review of a little seen but little loved television show called 'Over the Top,' which ran from October 1997 to — October 1997. (From the review:) 'Steve Carell's performance as what appeared to be a deaf-mute European chef should cause anyone watching with a modicum of taste to start tearing their hair while screeching, 'Get it off my TV. … Take it away. Oh, God.' " (You can find a link to the complete review in my "Steve Carell Doesn't Forget" post below.)

Outstanding achievement in news and information, to "Frontline." Martin Smith, producer. "I feel I should apologize coming between the two comedy awards. 'Frontline' can be such a downer. It's unfortunate that news and information has to be that way. Friends compliment me by calling me up and saying, 'That was really depressing. That was more depressing than your last depressing show.' "

Outstanding achievement in comedy, to "The Office." Greg Daniels, executive producer, thanked many people, including his partner Ben Silverman, "for having the taste, connection and frankly the (brass) to get back on that horse after 'Coupling.' " After reading a long list of names of actors, writers and others associated with the show, Daniels added: "I can already picture you guys reviewing this speech — its tired premise, there were no act breaks and it was terrible casting."

Heritage award (for important, long-running programs), to "The West Wing." Aaron Sorkin, creator: "About 10 years ago I was living in New York and early one morning my father came over to my apartment because the Academy Award nominations were being announced and there was some hope that I would be nominated for a movie that I had written that year. And when I wasn't, my father turned to me and said, 'Look, how many people in the world do you think got up this morning with even a reasonable expectation that something like this might happen?' Which is when I discovered that for most people, it's an honor just to be nominated (and) in my family it's an honor just to be overlooked."

Career achievement, to Carol Burnett (who received the most thunderous, sustained ovations of the night). Burnett: "Does this mean I'll never get another bad review?"

Burnett recalled how, in the early '60s, she signed a 10-year deal with CBS that included a five-year option for her to host a variety series on the network. "So we were five years into that contract, and I really needed the money. And so it was a week before the five years would be up, and I was in California with my husband, Joe Hamilton, … and we called Mike Dann at CBS. … And I said, 'Mike, you know, I think I want to push that button and do that variety show we talked about five years ago. And he said, 'What?' … He called the next day and said, 'Oh, right,' so they had to do this. And he said, 'But, you know, we have this great sitcom pilot thing called "Here's Agnes," and it would just be great for you.' … I said, 'This is what I really want to do,' and he had to do it. … And I'm so glad I didn't do 'Here's Agnes.' "

Program of the year, to "Grey's Anatomy." "You guys stuck with us through it all and you didn't even mind the fact that we wouldn't tell you what was going to happen in any episode of the show ever, for any reason."

I'm going to post a little later about tonight's Television Critics Association awards, but for now I want to mention Steve Carell's acceptance speech for individual achievement in comedy. Carell read a blistering review of his work on another show, a review so scorched-earth that some of us were convinced he had made it up. He insisted he had not, referred us to the Web site where he found it and … you can find the whole thing here.

I've posted from press tour about being in nifty places, and dropped some names of the people I've talked to. Those are fun things and, as I have said before, I have a cool job. But when I tell those stories, what may get lost is that the cool stuff can lead to something of value to readers.

When you're at these things, you get to see how people's minds work. Sure, there's a big load of nonsense tossed around at press conferences — answers that are pat or evasive or flat-out untrue. But almost as often, you can get at a real emotion, and have a  feel for what the people in television do. And, outside of those press conferences, you may get a chance to ask other questions in a more casual setting, and get a little deeper into how people think and feel.

Last night, for example, I stood and talked with John Madden about his going into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. I had expected a few quick questions and answers. But Madden is really excited about going into the hall; he offered a wonderful description of what it was like when he was waiting for the news — and how thrilled he was when he finally got it.

That — or sitting for an hour with Ray Wise, and hearing him explain how important "Good Night and Good Luck" was to him — gets you into people's hearts. Then, tonight I sat at a table with Kevin Reilly, the president of NBC Entertainment, and talked to him about the issues in a couple of projects I'm working on. (I'll save the specifics for closer to when the stories run.) We talked somewhat about his shows, but there were bigger issues to kick around as well, and he was more than willing to do some kicking.

The odds are a lot longer that, sitting in Akron, I could pick up a phone and talk to Reilly. And even if I did, it wouldn't be the same as sitting a couple of feet from him, watching him wrestle with an issue that should be interesting, if not important, for readers.

It was a good moment. It wasn't the only good moment of the night; on an entirely different plane, I had a nice chat with three of the models from "Deal or No Deal." But my conversation with them will probably intrigue some readers, too, and make them look at TV in a little different way. Which is, after all, what this job is about: talking about TV, and thinking about it, and wanting it to be better, and trying to see if there are better ways to look at it. And I wouldn't spend this much time away from my family if this didn't make me do a better job.

Because of the heat in Pasadena, NBC's evening event was delayed for an hour, which gave me a chance to take a longer-than-at-first planned nap from which I have just emerged. I don't think I'm alone in feeling dragged either. Even during press conferences for shows a lot of people like, the pace has felt slower, the undercurrent of crankiness a little stronger.

Still, the potential argument over the Emmys was less intense than it might have been, say, the day after the nominations were announced. Not that people didn't care. More that any admission of real wrongdoing on the Emmy people's part — let alone contrition — was obviously not going to happen. The TV academy has a system that bases nominations on a small sample of what a show or actor has actually done, and then offers those choices to viewers and critics who have spent far more hours following a show, often for an entire season.

The key dialogue went like this:

Reporter: "Do you honestly believe that the Emmy nominations represent the best of television
last season?"

Emmy Mouthpiece: "I believe that the Emmy nominations really represent the best works that were submitted (for Emmy consideration) … for last season."

The producers and stars of "Nobody's Watching" came around at lunch, and I confess to gushing a smidge over how good their pilot was. And I'm even more pumped as they talk about the new Webisodes (which they're hoping to have online Sept. 1) and the series beyond that. Especially exciting is the way the show is going to bend reality even more, by putting some of the adventures from the making of "Nobody's Watching" INTO "Nobody's Watching." As in, the pilot doesn't get picked up and the two stars have to figure out other ways to get by in L.A., or the pilot is posted on YouTube and what happens then, or NBC decides to pick up the show and the executive the guys dealt with at The WB is now the top guy at NBC. Expect to see the show's fictional guys at real events, too.

Very close to the bone stuff. Bill Lawrence, the "Scrubs" mastermind and "Nobody's Watching" co-creator, said he can't believe NBC is giving him money for this.

I hope to post more on this later today or tomorrow.

Just finished the session with Keith Olbermann. I had expected more laughs. But, while Olbermann is quick on his feet, he also feels like a very writerly guy — one who is most proud of the line he has taken time to shape and polish.

At the same time, though, he does listen to people — and hears things not even the speaker may have noticed. I asked him whether the cross-pollination of his show and so-called progressive radio (Stephanie Miller, Air America) was a factor in his ratings improvement, creating a "rising tide." He seized on the reference to "rising tide" — and other water metaphors — as a subconscious allusion to Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. And he thinks that was the moment when skepticism about the government became all right again, after years of post-9/11 benefits of the doubt.

It wasn't exactly an answer to my question. It was better.

Friday turned into an almost civilized day by press tour standards. In the afternoon, I chatted with John Lithlgow (who lived in Akron for a couple of years in his youth) about his TV work, his recent stagecraft and the pronunciation of his name. (Most people make it like cow, but it's like go.)

I managed a decent walk to pick up some laundry — realizing only after I had started walking that people hadn't been kidding about the temperature hitting triple digits. In the early evening, I had a good talk with John Madden, a little about going to NBC, more about going into the Hall of Fame. He is obviously moved by the experience, and moving when he talks about it. Then, dinner with a couple of colleagues, followed by a bit of work and even some TV-watching for pleasure.

In fact, I stayed up later than I should, watching more episodes of "Life on Mars," about a modern-day police detective who finds himself back in 1973 — but still a cop. BBC America starts airing it next week and, even though it has been edited for U.S. television, it's still entertaining.

I've also slid in some TV this morning, the British Open. The work day includes Keith Olbermann, NBC's football broadcast team, "30 Rock," the Emmys (possibly a blood-letting given how unhappy many of us are about the nominations) and "Friday Night Lights," which, as I've said, is my favorite pilot of the fall. And tonight holds NBC's party for its new and returning stars.

I expect to be posting a number of times over the weekend, about tour events and about some upcoming shows. So watch this space.

"Law & Order" impresario Dick Wolf is here today, which gave me a chance to clear up some cast departures that you folks have been asking about.

Annie Parisse ("L&O") asked out because she was becoming frustrated over having to turn down movie roles. Wolf called her "one of the role models of how to leave a show." Alana De La Garza ("CSI: Miami") will be a new ADA on the show.

Jamey Sheridan ("Criminal Intent"), as I've reported before, wanted to spend more time in California, where his family is. Eric Bogosian will succeed him.

Courtney B. Vance ("Criminal Intent") was at the end of his contract and the writers felt they had done all they could with his character. Nona Gaye — actress and daughter of Marvin Gaye — is coming in as a new ADA. (UPDATE: Gaye has reportedly left the series, with Theresa Randle replacing her.)

Annabella Sciorra ("CI") left by mutual agreement with the show, Wolf said, without elaboration. Julianne Nicholson (from Wolf's "Conviction") will play the new partner for Chris Noth.

As for speculation that Sam Waterston is leaving the original "L&O," Wolf called it "totally, totally fallacious. … Sam is back for all 22 episodes this year."

And, in case you missed it, Connie Nielsen will fill in for Mariska Hargitay on "Special Victims Unit"  while Hargitay is on maternity leave.

Score one for YouTube: NBC is going to make webisodes and develop new TV scripts for "Nobody's Watching," the Bill Lawrence-backed comedy originally planned for The WB. The hope is to start it as a prime-time series later in the 2006-07 season. (You can find the complete announcement here.)

As I mentioned in this blog (see the late-June post "Hurry…") and in the Beacon Journal, The WB did not pick up the series but the pilot ended up on YouTube, where it gained a lot of fans, with almost 400,000 views of the first part of the pilot as of this morning. Based on that buzz, Lawrence began talking to reporters, including me, and the show once again caught the networks' attention. Which is good news, because the pilot  — about two guys from Ohio given a chance to make their own TV comedy — was hilarious.

The webisodes should start within a month, says NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly. The guys from the show are already out and about in Hollywood, Reilly said, and may pop up at all sorts of show-biz events in the days ahead.